Forever
by Molly4
Summary: Goes in depth with Martha's story of how she met Jonathan in "Nicodemus." Basically how they met. Chpater 1 of 2 is up now. Chapter 1 from Jonathan's POV


Inspired by Martha's story in "Nicodemus." How Jonathan and Martha met, using alternating POVs.  
  
Spoilers: "Nicodemus." Please note that some details taken from Martha's story may be a little off or altered on purpose for my creative ideas to flow properly.  
  
Disclaimers: Don't own Jonathan or Martha, but I've loved Jonathan ever since "The Dukes of Hazzard." I have a new found respect for the WB for having the scene in the truck where Jonathan listens to the them song. *giggle* Takes me back.   
  
Oh, and I have relatives who live in Kansas so most of Jonathan's usage of words is based on how they speak. I know it isn't how they speak on the show but that's WB Kansas not Real Kansas. I dunno. Maybe my relatives are just weird or something.  
  
  
Forever  
By: Molly  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Part 1: Jonathan's P.O.V.  
  
  
I rolled over in bed with a groan as Momma called my name for the tenth time. I could be a farmer for my entire life but I doubt I'll ever get used to waking up at the crack of dawn to milk those damn cows. Not that I'm going to be a farmer though. I'm going to be a football player. Everyone tells me I'm good enough, even Coach Harris who doesn't hand out compliments easily.   
  
I finally got up though, a little more venom in Momma's voice than usual. Oops. I shuffled down the stairs and yawned.   
  
"Morning Jonathan," Momma greeted me with a smile and a plate of breakfast.  
  
"Morning Momma," I replied.  
  
I kissed Momma on the cheek and stuffed a piece of bacon in my mouth before shoving my shoes on my bare feet and heading out to the barn. Pa's already out there, feeding the chickens.  
  
"Hurry up and get to work Jon. I want all your morning chores done before you go to class." Pa gave me a stern look and I nodded.  
  
I headed straight to Maggie, the first cow we'd gotten. She's a real beauty, and gives us the best milk in all of Smallville. That doesn't make me like the task any better, but it helps some when I think of all the money she helps us earn. I completed the chore quickly, eager for breakfast.  
  
Pa met me outside the barn a big smile on his face. He put his arm around my shoulders and we walked to the house. I couldn't stifle a yawn.  
  
"You tired Johnny Boy?" he asked sympathetically, using the name he always used to use when I was younger.  
  
"A little," I admitted sheepishly.  
  
"Just don't go sleeping through that class of yours," Pa warned me, waving a finger at me. "I didn't pay good money so you could nap."  
  
"Yes, Pa." I sighed. He opened up the back door and we sat down to breakfast.  
  
My stomach grumbled. Momma set a huge plate of breakfast right in front of me. She kissed me on the forehead letting her fingers linger there for a second and sat down at her own seat.  
  
"You don't seem to be running a fever Jonathan, but I still want you to take it easy today." Momma commented, taking a forkful of eggs.  
  
I'd just gotten really sick a little awhile ago. Aches and pains all over, delirium, high fever. Momma's still hovering over me like I'm some kind of baby or something. Pa said I was so out of it I was calling him Momma too. I couldn't tell if he was joking or not, but he seemed pretty serious. Even after I started feeling better she refused to let me do my chores or play football. Mothers. No matter how old you are, you're still their baby boy.  
  
"Yes Momma," I mumbled, scarfing down my food quickly.  
  
"Slow down baby. This isn't a race," Momma informed me, shaking her head. "Maybe if you ate a little slower you wouldn't have gotten so sick." She glared at me pointedly.  
  
I bit back a comment about it having nothing to do with the way I ate my food but I didn't bother. Nobody ever won an argument with Momma, especially me. It's easier just to agree and not kick up a fuss about it. I simply nodded, and slowed down.   
  
"Momma did you wash my blue shirt?" I asked, taking a sip of milk.  
  
"Yes, dear. I hung it in your closet this morning," she replied with a smile.  
  
I grinned. It was my first day of classes, so everything had to be just right. My blue shirt is kind of like my lucky shirt. Momma tells me it make me look just like Pa did when he was my age.   
  
"What time will you be getting home Jon?" Pa asked, reading the newspaper at the table something Momma always fusses about.  
  
"I dunno," I mumbled, getting up to get some milk. I started to chug the milk straight from the bottle. It tastes better that way.  
  
"Jonnnnnnnnnnnathan." Momma caught me without even turning around. Amazing.  
  
I grinned sheepishly and poured myself a glass of milk. I finished the rest of my breakfast quickly, eager to get my chores done and be able the relax awhile before heading to Metropolis.   
  
After my chores were done I went upstairs to take a nap. I hadn't been able to sleep the night before, worrying about my first class. I'd only been to Metropolis a few times and each time had proved disastrous. There was the time in my freshman year of high school when I went after winning an essay contest and almost got hit by a car. And the time Lionel convinced me to go to some dance club with him. I brought Nell along and some punk picked a fight with me. I ended up in jail no matter if I was friends with a Luthor and Pa wasn't hesitant about giving me a good thrashing seeing that I never do it again. Nell and I broke up soon after that. I hope this trip doesn't end up like that.  
  
I yawned and stretched out across my bed. I knew I wouldn't be able to sleep but just to rest my body was a good idea. The business class had been Momma and Pa's idea. Pa's always telling me that football isn't a solid enough career and I'll need something to fall back on. Pa worries a lot about my future. He wants to give me a better life than he had, and he's afraid he's already failed.   
  
Momma would probably rather have me around the house all day long. She's overprotective of me seeing as I'm her only kid. She worries more about my health than she does my future. She's always telling me I don't eat enough when in fact, I eat enough for about five people. And oh boy, sickness. If I cough once she's already dialing the doctor and putting a hand to my forehead. I have no clue what it is with mothers and fevers, but I'm sure it's some kind of obsession.   
  
The only reason I stick around the farm is so that I can help them out. Pa with chores, and Momma, well, just letting her know I'm safe seems to be enough for her. I suppose that when I make enough money, when the time is right, I'll get out of Smallville.   
  
I rested for about a half hour before showering, shaving, and getting dressed. I put on a nicer looking pair of jeans and a blue button down shirt. I knew Momma would tell me to button or button it herself if I didn't so I buttoned it to spare her the trouble. She doesn't want the big city folk thinking I'm some uneducated hick. I heard her tell Pa that. She'd never say it to my face. Sweet woman, really. I ran a comb through my hair before finally heading downstairs.  
  
Momma and Pa were waiting for me, in "Leave it to Beaver," fashion. Momma handed me my lunch, Pa handed me my jacket. I smiled as Momma gave me her brown bag lunch. Some things never change. I've had the same paper bag folded over three times crammed to the brim with food since the first grade. And it was never really my lunch until she whipped out a marker and wrote 'JONATHAN' on both sides. I don't mind the lunch, though I knew I'd probably get a few funny looks. One taste of Momma's lunches and they'd know why I didn't care.  
  
Momma hugged me and kissed me on the cheek. "Have a good day sweetheart. And be careful. Don't talk to people you don't know." I smiled. Typical.  
  
Pa handed me my jacket before kissing me on the forehead. Since I was little Pa always taught me that you were never too manly to kiss your son. Him kissing me is common practice around here. His pa used to beat him, I think. Not the occasional whipping, like when he did something wrong like Pa does to me, but just for no reason, whenever.   
  
"I'm proud of you son," he told me with a smile. "Good luck."  
  
I smiled, kissed Momma, then kissed Pa. "Good bye Momma. Bye Pa. Love you."  
  
"I love you to Jonathan," they reply simultaneously.   
  
Okay, so the Kents are an affectionate family. So what? I headed out to the truck, whistling softly.   
  
"Put on a sweater!" I heard Momma yell as I pulled out of the driveway. I couldn't help but smile. Good old Momma.  
  
The drive was slow and uneventful. The radio fills the silence, but I still can't help but feel a few butterflies floating around my stomach. Smallville High wasn't a big school, the teachers all knew you by name, and everyone knew just about everyone since they were in diapers. Metropolis was a different story. I'd heard stories about the kinds of things that went on there. I shuddered just thinking about them.  
  
Metropolis U was ultimately an intimidating sight. People were everywhere, most of them with friends. I swallowed back a lump in my front, kind of wishing I had somebody there to talk to. Maybe then this wouldn't feel so nerve racking. I shoved my lunch bag into the glove compartment, took a deep breath, grabbed a notebook, and headed for class, afraid that I'd never find it and end up wandering the campus for hours.  
  
I did end up finding it, just in time for class. I breathed a sigh of relief as I slid into one of the seats in the back, where I felt I could properly observe the other people and the class. My eyes traveled around the room and stopped on a pretty girl hunched over a notebook. She looked so sweet and innocent, like maybe she was from a small town too. Couldn't have been Smallville though. I would've remembered a face like that.  
  
I guess she felt my eyes on her or something because she turned around the look at me. I flashed my warmest smile the ones that Nell used to tell me could melt butter. She smiled back, though kind of warily. She turned back to her notebook and I smiled.  
  
The professor entered soon and class began. I took notes diligently. Pa had helped pay for the class so I figured I'd better learn enough to please him. My hand was cramped up by the first ten minutes of class but I kept on writing. Some kids just sat there and stared, others like me, were taking notes. I admit though, my mind drifted occasionally, to football mostly. But I managed to keep my mind on class for the majority of the time.  
  
After class I grabbed my lunch, sans the bag with 'JONATHAN' written on it, (I didn't want anybody to see that) and sat down on the fountain to enjoy my lunch. It was a pretty day outside, perfect for just sitting there and eating. I kept my notebook close by my side, vowing to go over my notes when I got a chance. I ate my chicken parmesan sandwich while I watched people milling around. It's odd, but I like to watch people and guess where they're headed, things like that.  
  
I nibbled a juicy red apple, the sandwich long gone. The pretty girl from class approached me hesitantly. I watched her out of the corner of my eye. I didn't want to seem like a fool. After all, maybe she wasn't heading towards me. It became apparent that she was though, when she plopped down next to me.  
  
"Hi," she greeted me timidly. Not waiting for a reply she continued. "Um, may I borrow your notes."  
  
I wasn't quite sure what to say, knowing she was the note taker in the class, so I handed the notebook over with a smile. She looked at me, bewildered. I kind of smile though. She was trying to start up a conversation or something. She really didn't need my notes.  
  
"You're giving it to me just like that, without even asking my name?" She asked, confused. "How do you know I'll give it back?"  
  
I grinned at her. "I prefer to trust people." It's something Momma and Pa always taught me, but I don't mention that. She looks blown away. It's a few seconds before she says anything but I can see her face turn a curious shade of red.  
  
"That's rare in a...uh, a big city like Metropolis," she commented brushing a lock of reddish hair behind her ear.  
  
"Well, maybe that's because I'm not from Metropolis," I told her with a grin.   
  
"Oh, really?" She asked surprised, only in a way that I can tell she knew all along.  
  
"Yep. I'm from Smallville." I pause. "Would you like an apple? I have another." I should've asked earlier. Where were my manners?   
  
"No thank you," she replied politely.   
  
There was something intriguing about this girl. She was timid, I could tell by the way she kind of fidgeted. She was beautiful though, not like any girl I'd ever seen before. She seemed so vulnerable too, but at the same time I sensed strength in her. Or maybe I was just over analyzing her. I tend to do that sometimes.  
  
"What?" She asked self-consciously. "Is something wrong." Whoops. Back to reality.  
  
"Oh, I'm sorry." I hadn't even realized that I'd been staring at her. Another though struck me. "Oh, sorry. I didn't even introduce myself. My name is Jonathan Kent."   
  
She smiled a pretty smile as I held out my hand. She took it and I kissed it gently like I'd seen in some of the movies. Say what you will about the farmer types, but we do know how to treat a woman like a lady.   
  
"I'm Martha Whalen," she replied shyly.   
  
"Pleasure to meet you. You're taking the business course too?" That's me, just trying to make conversation.  
  
Martha nodded. "Just considering my many options," she told me with a smile.  
  
"Say, would you like to maybe go to the diner across the street and uh," I cleared my throat. Why was this so hard? "uh, you know, have dinner or something." I cursed myself as I felt my face turned crimson.   
  
Martha looked around a bit, a little nervously, then turned back to face me. "Yes. Yes. I'd like that....Jonathan." She smiled and my heart skipped a beat.  
  
"Great. I just have to make a phone call. Be right back."  
  
"Okay. Sure."  
  
I jogged to the nearest pay phone to call Momma and Pa to tell them I'd be late. Momma was worried that I'd gotten hurt or sick, or passed out and just didn't want to tell her. I had to choke back a laugh at that. Pa just told me to be back as soon as possible. He didn't care how tired I was in the morning, he'd still drag me out of bed to do my chores, so no coming in after midnight. I said goodbye, hung up, and turned back towards Martha.  
  
I gazed at her, sitting on the edge of the fountain, flipping through my notebook. A lock of hair fell across her face and she tucked it behind her ear. Lord, she was beautiful. That's when it hit me.  
  
I wanted to be with her forever. I don't know how I knew it, I just did. I barely knew her, just talked with her a few minutes. So why did I think this? And why was I so sure of myself? It scared the crap out of me.  
  
But I liked it.  
  
  
  
  
End of Chapter 1. Chapter 2 will be all of this from Martha's POV, starting with her morning, continuing with her meeting Jonathan and ending at pretty much the same point.  
  
If I get good reviews I might write a sequel to this story, continuing on with their relationship. So R&R folks! I live off your reviews! 


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